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"
Ministers, Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen,
I welcome you all to this meeting of the North Atlantic Cooperation Council. We meet at a historic time, when peace in Bosnia is within sight and when many of the countries represented here are preparing their troops for deployment to Bosnia as part of the peace implementation force.
Since its inauguration four years ago, the North Atlantic Cooperation Council has become a symbol of a new era in Euro-Atlantic security cooperation. It has proved its value as a forum for substantive consultation on key political and security related issues and as a means of strengthening the ties between our countries. The launch of the Partnership for Peace by the NATO Summit in January last year took this process a significant step forward. The fact that Allies and Partners will implement the peace plan side-by-side shows that our cooperation is bearing fruit. Less than two years after the launch of Partnership for Peace, we have tangible evidence of a partnership which works.
Today's meeting will focus on two major sets of issues. The first major issue on our agenda today is the situation in and around Bosnia-Herzegovina. The success of the Dayton talks provides a critical opportunity to put an end to the conflict in Bosnia. The fact that it is backed by the Presidents of Bosnia-Herzegovina, Croatia and Serbia and by the international community means that we now have a basis on which an enduring peace for the whole region can be built.
The Dayton talks reinforce the hope that diplomacy can triumph over force, that common sense can prevail over violent nationalism and that international cooperation can persist against aggression and confrontation. We do not see the Bosnia peace settlement as merely a short-term fix; it should constitute the starting point for building a new stability in that region, just as we are building a new European stability. There is much work to be done before the ghosts of the past can be finally put to rest.
So, we must seize this opportunity. The current preparations for an implementation force clearly demonstrate the value of close cooperation between NATO Allies and Partners.
As a second major issue in our discussions, we will take stock of our cooperation activities under the NACC and the Partnership for Peace. Both initiatives have already demonstrated a tremendous capacity for change and adaptation, and it is no exaggeration to state that they have begun to change the face of Europe. Today's meeting is an opportunity to carry them further. The continuing ambitious and forward-looking agenda of the NACC will be emphasised by our endorsement of the Work Plan for 1996/1997; we will also have a frank exchange about possible further steps to strengthen the NACC as our principal framework for political consultation.
Partnership for Peace is a key part of our cooperation. Indeed, it could be described as the centre-piece of our work together. It has given important new impetus to our cooperation within the framework of the North Atlantic Cooperation Council. Since its launch, Partnership for Peace has become the most successful and most ambitious military cooperation programme ever conceived and a prominent and well-established element of Euro-Atlantic security. The scope for its further evolution is far from being exhausted. As we strive to make this framework ever more relevant for addressing issues of common concern, we should aim at further improvement of its capabilities for preparing both Allies and Partners to operate together in peacekeeping and humanitarian operations. We will also seek to enhance the Partnership's considerable potential for helping in the development of sound civil-military relations and democratic control of armed forces.
The recent success of the Dayton talks and the continuing success and development of the NACC process both have one thing in common: a strong transatlantic link. It is the awareness that Europe and North America are united in a community of shared values and responsibilities that forms the basis for progress and that enables us to look with hope to the future. Indeed, as we move towards the implementation of a peace agreement, the value of a firm transatlantic link is more evident than ever.
Our agenda today is a demanding one, but so is our continuing goal: a just and lasting order of peace for the entire Euro-Atlantic area. Today's meeting will bring us another step closer to it.
"